Corner construction for hollow wall tray



June 17, 1969 P. w. LEWIS ET AL CORNER CONSTRUCTION FOR HOLLOW WALL TRAYFiled Oct. 6, 1967 [72 ventra Phi m wnm w fi T Z ji hwy United StatesPatent Oflice 3,450,347. Patented June 17, 1969 US. Cl. 229-34 ClaimsABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE In a hollow wall tray having a bottom walland opposed pairs of hollow side walls upstanding therefrom, a cornerconstruction including a pair of flaps hinged to end edges of outer andinner panels of one side wall and disposed to lie against outer andinner panels, respectively, of the outer side wall with the inner flapof one wall having a tongue and slit connection with the inner panel ofthe other wall, and a projection on a top panel of one side wall beingreceived within the other side wall under the top panel thereof.

It is an object of this invention to provide, in a hollow wallpaperboard tray, an improved corner construction that affords a simpleyet strong interlocking connection.

Another object of this invention is the provision in a. carton of thetype described of a corner construction which is adapted to beautomatically set up on high speed machinery.

A more specific object of the invention is the provision of a cornerconstruction for a pair of hollow walls, with inner, outer, and toppanels, which includes projections from the three panels of one walldisposed to lie against the related three panels of the outer wall.

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent from anexamination of the following description and drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a hollow wall tray carton embodyingfeatures of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of a corner portion of the blank from which thetray of FIGURE 1 may be formed;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view similar to FIGURE 2, but showing the blank in aglued condition; and

FIGURES 4 and 5 are fragmentary perspective views showing a corner ofthe tray of FIGURE 1 in various stages of assembly.

It will be understood that, for purposes of clarity, certain elementshave been intentionally omitted from certain views where they arebelieved to be illustrated to better advantage in other views.

Referring now to the drawing for a better understanding of theinvention, and particularly to FIGURE 1, it will be seen that the traycarton includes a flat, preferable rectangular bottom wall havingopposed pairs of first and second side and end walls 12 and 14,respectively, upstanding therefrom with adjacent end portionsinterlocked to form a corner construction indicated generally at 16.

First or side wall 12., as best seen in FIGURES 2 and 4, includesanouter panel 20 hinged to and upstanding from the related outer sideedge of bottom wall 10 along .a hinge line 22; inner panel 24 spacedinwardly from the outer panel in parallel relation therewith and hingedat its lower edge along a hinge line 26 to a glue flap 2-8 which isadhesively secured to the upper surface of bottom wall 10; and a toppanel 30 which is hinged along its side edges along hinge lines 32 and34 to the upper edges of outer and inner panels 20 and 24, respectively.

As best seen in FIGURE 4, first wall 12 is provided with a relativelyshort longitudinal slit 36 which extends inwardly from the free edge offirst wall 12 along hinge line 34.

Inner panel 24 of first wall 12 is provided with an invetted, generallyV-shaped slit 38 which has a vertical portion 40, extending upwardlyfrom a point adjacent bottom wall 10 to a point adjacent the upper edgeof panel 24, and an inclined section 42, extending downwardly andoutwardly from the upper end of section 40 at an angle of approximately45 toward the adjacent corner of bottom wall 10'. Section 42 preferablyextends only about halfway from the upper end of vertical section 40 tothe corner of the bottom wall.

As best seen in FIGURE 2, glue flap 28 is recessed at its end as at 44,to provide space for the adjacent end of glue flap 58 of second wall 14.

As best seen in FIGURE 5, the second or end wall 14 includes an outerpanel 50' hinged to an end edge of bottom wall 10 along a hinge line 52;an inner panel 54 spaced inwardly from the outer panel and in parallelrelation therewith which is hinged at its lower edge along a hinge line'56 to a glue flap 58 which is adhesively secured to the upper face ofbottom wall and a top panel which is hingedly connected along its sideedges at hinge lines 62 and 64 to upper edges of outer and inner panels50 and 54, respectively.

Second wall 14 has a pair of outwardly extending flaps 66 and 68hingedly attached to the end edges of outer and inner panels 50 and 54,respectively, which flaps :are disposed to extend normal to the secondwall, when the carton is in erected condition, and to lie against theinner faces of first wall outer and inner panels 20 and 24,respectively.

As best seen in FGURE 2, second wall inner flap 68 is cut out at 70 toprovide a lock tab or tongue 72 adapted to be received within theV-shaped slit 38 of first wall inner panel 24.

The stock cut from the second wall inner panel 54 projects outwardlyfrom the second wall top panel 60 and is received within the spacebetween the outer and inner panels of the first wall and immediatelybelow the top panel of the first wall. Second wall top panel 60, as bestseen in FIGURES 4 and 5, is provided with a transverse slit 76immediately inwardly adjacent projection 74 which slit is adapted forinterlocking connection with related slit 36 in the top of first wall12.

As best seen in FIGURE 2, flap 68 is tapered as at 70, projection 74 istapered as at 82, flap 66 is tapered at 84, flap 66 is rounded at 86,and first wall inner and top panels 24 and 30 are tapered as at '88.These tapers and curves are all designed to facilitate the mating ofinterlocking portions of the adjacent end portion of the first andsecond walls as the carton is assembled.

The carton as previously described is designed not only to provide astrong and rigid interlocking connection for the corner construction butalso to facilitate assembly of the carton on high speed carton erectingequipment.

To describe the assembly of the carton, it will be understood that thecarton is shipped from the manufacturer to the packer as a flat gluedblank, as shown in FIGURE 3. Only two operations are required to erectand lock the carton in erected condition. First, the entire first walland the outer and inner flaps 66 and 68 of the second wall are foldedupwardly at right angles to the carton bottom wall and second wall.Thereafter, second wall 14 is folded upwardly at right angles to bottomwall 10* and 3 first wall, and as second wall 14 moves to verticalposition four actions take place simultaneously:

(A) Second wall outer panel flap 66 moves into the first wall to lieagainst the inner face of first wall outer panel 20;

(B) Second wall inner panel flap 68 moves along the inner face of firstwall inner panel 24 until locking tab 72 of the second wall engagelocking slit 38 of the first wall;

(C) Second wall top panel projection 74 moves into the first wallbetween the inner and outer panels of the first wall and immediatelybelow the top panel of the first wall;

(D) Slit 36 of the first wall engages slit 76 of the second wall.

Thus, it will be seen that by two simple motions the carton can berapidly assembled and locked in erected condition to form a firm andrigid corner construction.

We claim:

1. In a hollow wall tray formed from a unitary blank of foldablepaperboard, an interlocking corner construction, comprising:

(a) a bottom wall;

(b) a pair of first and second side walls disposed normal to each otherand having adjacent interlocking end portions;

(c) each of said side walls including:

(i) an outer panel hinged to an outer side edge of the bottom wall andupstanding therefrom;

(ii) an inner panel attached to the bottom wall and upstanding therefromin spaced parallel relation with said outer panel; and

(iii) a top panel hingedly connected along its side edges tocorresponding upper edges of respective inner and outer panels;

(d) all of the panels of said first side wall being of substantially thesame length and being coextensive with said bottom wall;

(e) said first side wall including:

(i) a longitudinal slit extending inwardly from the free edge of saidfirst side wall along the hinge line between said top and inner panels;

(ii) an inverted Vshaped slit in said inner panel, having a verticalportion spaced inwardly from the free edge of said inner panel andextending upwardly from a point adjacent the bottom wall to a pointadjacent the top panel, and an inclined section extending downwardly andoutwardly from the top of said vertical section toward an adjacentcorner of said bottom wall;

(f) said second side wall outer and top panels being of substantiallythe same length and being coextensive with said bottom wall, and saidinner panel being shorter than the outer and top panels and extendingonly to the first side wall inner panel;

(g) said second side wall including:

(i) a pair of outer and inner flaps hingedly attached to end edges ofand extending normal to respective outer and inner panels and disposedto lie against the inner faces, respectively, of the first side wallouter and inner panels;

(h) said second side wall inner flap having a notch cut in the upperedge thereof to form therein a locking tab receivable within the slit ofsaid first side wall inner panel;

(i) said second side wall top panel having a portion cut from stock ofsaid inner panel flap and projecting from the side of said top paneladjacent the end thereof for receipt within said first side wallimmediately below said first side wall top panel;

(j) said second side wall top panel having a transverse slit thereinadjacent said projecting portion thereof for interlocking engagementwith the longitudinal slit of said first side wall.

2. In a hollow wall tray formed from a unitary blank of foldablepaperboard, an interlocking corner construction, comprising: i

(a) a bottom wall;

(b) a pair of first and second side walls disposed normal to each otherand having adjacent interlocking end portions;

(0) each of said side walls including:

(i) an outer panel hinged to an outer side edge of the bottom wall andupstanding therefrom;

(ii) an inner panel attached to the bottom wall and upstanding therefromin spaced parallel relation with said outer panel; and

(iii) a top panel hingedly connected along its side edges tocorresponding upper edges of respective inner and outer panels;

(d) all of the panels of said first side wall being of substantially thesame length and being coextensive with said bottom wall;

(e) said first side wall including:

(i) a longitudinal slit extending inwardly from the free edge of saidfirst side wall along the hinge line between said top and inner panels;

(ii) a slit in said inner panel;

(f) said second side wall outer and top panels being of substantiallythe same length and being coextensive with said bottom wall, and saidinner panel being shorter than the outer and top panels and extendingonly to the first side wall inner panel;

(g) said second side wall including:

(i) a pair of outer and inner flaps hingedly attached to end edges ofand extending normal to respective outer and inner panels and disposedto lie against the inner faces, respectively, of the first side wallouter and inner panels;

(h) said second side wall inner flap having a locking tab receivablewithin the slit of said first side wall inner panel;

(i) said second side wall top panel having a portion cut from stock ofsaid inner panel flap and projecting from the side of said top paneladjacent the end thereof for receipt within said first side wallimmediately below said first side wall top panel;

(j) said second wall top panel having a transverse slit therein adjacentsaid projecting portion thereof for interlocking engagement with thelongitudinal slit of said first side wall.

3. -In a hollow wall tray formed from a unitary blank of foldablepaperboard, an interlocking corner construction, comprising:

(a) a bottom wall;

(b) a pair of first and second side walls disposed normal to each otherand having adjacent interlocking end portions;

(c) each of said side walls including:

(i) an outer panel hinged to an outer side edge of the bottom wall andupstanding therefrom;

(ii) an inner panel attached to the bottom wall and upstanding therefromin spaced parallel relation with said outer panel; and

(iii) a top panel hingedly connected along its side edges tocorresponding upper edges of respective inner and outer panels;

(d) all of the panels of said first side wall being of substantially thesame length and being coextensive with said bottom wall;

(e) said first side wall including:

(i) a longitudinal slit extending inwardly from the free edge of saidfirst side wall along the hinge line between said top and inner panels;

(ii) a slit in said inner panel;

(f) said second side wall outer and top panels being of substantiallythe same length and being coextensive with said bottom wall, and saidinner panel being shorter than the outer and top panels and extendingonly to the first side wall inner panel;

(g) said second side wall including:

(i) a pair of outer and inner flaps hingedly attached to end edges ofand extending normal to respective outer and inner panels and disposedto lie against the first side wall outer and inner panels, respectively;

(h) said second side wall inner flap having a locking tab receivablewithin the slit of said first side wall inner panel;

(i) said second side wall top panel having a portion projecting from theside of said top panel adjacent the end thereof for receipt within saidfirst side wall immediately below said first side wall top panel;

(j) said second side wall top panel having a transverse slit thereinadjacent said projecting portion thereof for interlocking engagementwith the longitudinal slit of said first side wall.

4. In a hollow wall tray formed from a unitary blank of foldablepaperboard, an interlocking corner construction, comprising:

(a) a bottom wall;

(b) a pair of first and second side walls disposed normal to each otherand having adjacent interlocking end portions;

(c) each of said side walls including:

(i) an outer panel hinged to an outer side edge of the bottom wall andupstanding therefrom;

(ii) an inner panel attached to the bottom wall and upstanding therefromin spaced parallel relation with said outer panel; and

(iii) a top panel hingedly connected along its side edges tocorresponding upper edges of respective inner and outer panels;

(d) said first side wall including:

(i) a longitudinal slit extending inwardly from the free edge of saidfirst side wall along the hinge line between said top and inner panels;

(ii) a slit in said inner panel;

(e) said second side wall including:

(i) a pair of outer and inner flaps hingedly at tached to end edges ofand extending normal to respective outer and inner panels and disposedto lie against the first side wall outer and inner panels, respectively;

(f) said second side wall inner flap having a locking tab receivablewithin the slit of said first side wall inner panel;

(g) said second side wall top panel having a portion projecting from theside of said top panel adjacent the end thereof for receipt within saidfirst side wall immediately below said first side wall top panel;

(h) said second side wall top panel having a transverse slit thereinadjacent said projecting portion thereof for interlocking engagementwith the longitudinal slit of said first side wall.

5. In a hollow wall tray formed from a unitary blank pf foldablepaperboard, an interlocking corner construction, comprising:

(a) a bottom wall;

(b) a pair of first and second side walls disposed normal to each otherand having adjacent interlocking end portions;

(c) each of said side walls including:

(i) an outer panel hinged to an outer side edge of the bottom wall andupstanding therefrom;

(ii) an inner panel attached to the bottom wall and upstanding therefromin spaced parallel relation with said outer panel; and

(iii) a top panel hingedly connected along its side edges tocorresponding upper edges of respective inner and outer panels;

(d) said first side wall having a slit in said inner panel;

(e) said second side wall including:

(i) a pair of outer and inner flaps hingedly attached to end edges ofand extending normal to respective outer and inner panels and disposedto lie against the first side wall outer and inner panels, respectively;

(f) said second side wall inner flap having a locking tab receivablewithin the slit of said first side wall inner panel;

(g) said second side wall top panel having a portion projecting from theside of said top panel adjacent the end thereof for receipt within saidfirst side wall immediately below said first side wall top panel.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,345,716 4/1944 Smith 229342,893,622 7/1959 Fogel 229-64 DAVID M. BOCKENEK, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 229-32

